#OccupyWallStreet will try to shut down NYSE Thursday

Occupy Wall Street is set to take on New York Stock Exchange on Thursday by holding a street carnival on Wall Street to mark the two-month anniversary of their campaign.

Protest organizers said the “day of action” could be the group’s most provocative yet, and could lead to mass arrests and further strain relations with city authorities.

“I think we’re certainly going into this with our eyes wide open, but [the march is] to provoke ideas and discussion, not to provoke any violent reactions,” said Occupy Wall Street press liaison Ed Needham.

“I think it is very difficult to do a day of action and not expect some sort of reaction from the [authorities],” he said.

The protesters plan to march from Zuccotti Park to Wall Street then spread across the city’s subways to tell the stories of disenfranchised Americans, finally meeting up later for a march across the Brooklyn Bridge.

Last month, more than 700 people were arrested during a similar march across the bridge, after some protesters sat on the pedestrian walkway and refused to move, while others strayed into car lanes.

“We will shut down Wall Street,” a post on the movement’s Facebook page said.

“We will ring the People’s Bell, and initiate a street carnival in which we rebuild and celebrate the neighborhoods that the Wall Street economy has destroyed.”

The group promises “a block party the 1% will never forget.”

A spokesman for the stock exchange declined to comment.

When asked Monday about the march, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said: “The New York Stock exchange will open on time. People will be able to get to work, you can rest assured.”